She is one of the most finely-tuned and sophisticated pieces of technology in the US Navy, designed to hunt down and destroy even the best-hidden of enemy sea mines.

But apparently the USS Guardian isn't quite so efficient at spotting coral reefs, as it proved while minesweeping in the Sulu Sea, 400 miles southwest of Manila, in the Philippines.

The state-of-the-art minesweeper crashed onto the Tubbataha Reef, a World Heritage Site, during a training run on Thursday where it has become stubbornly wedged.

Navy chiefs have blamed an inaccurate map as a possible cause for the calamity, which conservationists say has severely damaged one of the world's most treasured ocean beauty spots.

Run aground: Apparently, the USS Guardian isn't very good at spotting coral reefs, as it proved yesterday when it ran aground in the Sulu Sea, 400 miles southwest of Manila, in the Philippines

All 79 officers and crew of the USS Guardian were forced to abandon ship as several support vessels continued to conduct salvage operations that minimize environmental effects to the reef today.

The Navy said in a statement that a review of Digital Nautical Charts, which are used for safe navigation by all U.S. Navy ships, found they contained inaccurate data and may have been a factor in the Guardian's grounding.

RELATED ARTICLES

Share this article

Share

As a result, Navigator of the Navy Rear Adm. Jonathan White released precautionary guidance to all Pacific Fleet ships, saying that 'initial review of navigation data indicates an error in the location of Tubbataha Reef' in the Philippines.

Stuck: Navy chiefs have blamed an inaccurate map as a possible cause after the minesweeper hit the Tubbataha Reef, a World Heritage Site, during a training run on Thursday

Trouble ahead: Navy chiefs have blamed an inaccurate map as a possible cause for the calamity, which conservationists say has severely damaged one of the world's most treasured ocean beauty spots

'While the erroneous navigation chart data is important information, no one should jump to conclusions,' said Pacific Fleet spokesman Capt. Darryn James. 'It is critical that the US Navy conduct a comprehensive investigation that assesses all the facts surrounding the Guardian grounding.'

The Avenger-class ship had just completed a port call in Subic Bay, a former American naval base west of the capital, Manila, and was en route to Indonesia and then on to East Timor to participate in a training exercise when it hit the reef, about 80 miles southeast of Palawan Island.

When training runs go bad: The Avenger-class ship (marked '5') had just completed a port call in Subic Bay, a former American naval base west of the capital, Manila, and was en route to Indonesia and then on to East Timor

Location: The US Navy ship was minesweeping in the Sulu Sea, 400 miles southwest of Manila, in the Philippines

The World Wide Fund for Nature Philippines said that according to an initial visual inspection, the 68-meter-long, 1,300-ton Guardian damaged at least 10 metres of the reef, which UNESCO designated as a World Heritage Site.

It is part of Southeast Asia's Coral Triangle, a huge stretch of ocean that contains most of the world's coral species, reefs, and more than 3,000 species of fish.

Angelique Songco, head of the government's Protected Area Management Board, said the government imposes a fine of about $300 per square metre of damaged coral, plus other fees.

In 2005, the environmental group Greenpeace was fined almost $7,000 after its flagship struck a reef in the same area.

Songco blamed the Guardian for turning away park rangers who wanted to board the minesweeper, but the Navy said it was cooperating with the Philippine government, a key US defence ally.

Presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte said the government will observe the law governing the Tubbataha Reef, but right now 'the primary concern is extricating the ship out of the reef with minimal damage.'